Crown-ticipating: Parul Shah

When Binibini 4 Parul Shah joined Bb. Pilipinas Gold, many pageant watchers (including myself) predicted that she will take home one of the four crowns offered back then. It was quite a suspenseful night for the Cordillera representative. She was the last to be called in the Top 15, which meant going for the Q&A after everyone else had theirs. But somehow, she did not fully deliver when it mattered most. There was a tentative quality in the way she answered, and that probably costed her a spot in the Top 5.

Learning from the lessons of 2013, this Fil-Indian comer took stock of what just happened and was convinced by Kagandahang Flores to give it one more try. And while she knows the risk of battling it out from square one with a new set of contenders, there is also the determination to redeem herself and do her parents proud with the decision to re-join the pageant. There is more compared to her version last year. Fiercer. Sexier. And clearly more confident. A step up in presentation and over-all projection.

At the age of 25, time is not on her side. And Parul wants to make sure that she is covering all bases en route to clinching a title in this, her second and last Bb. Pilipinas participation. That is her main hope.